Scientists urge New Zealand to save 'sea hobbit' (Update)

July 1, 2013
by Neil Sands

Maui's dolphins off the west coast of New Zealand's North Island on June 5, 2013. Marine scientists have urged New Zealand to immediately ban fishing in waters inhabited by the world's rarest dolphin, saying that losing even one of the creatures will threaten the species' existence.

Marine scientists have called on New Zealand immediately to ban fishing in waters inhabited by the world's rarest dolphin, saying that losing just one more of the creatures will threaten the species' existence.

The Maui's dolphin is one of the world's smallest, with a maximum length of 1.7 metres (5.5 feet), prompting conservationists to call it "the hobbit of the sea".

Found only in shallow waters off the North Island's west coast, it is listed as critically endangered with just 55 adults remaining and there are fears it will disappear by 2030 unless urgent action is taken.

The International Whaling Commission's (IWC) scientific committee said it was extremely concerned about the dolphin's plight, adding: "The human-caused death of even one dolphin in such a small population would increase the extinction risk for this sub-species."

While the New Zealand government has previously said it would consider both the risks facing the dolphins and the impact on the local fishing industry before implementing a management plan, the IWC said there was no room for delay.

"Rather than seeking further scientific evidence, the priority should be given to immediate management actions that will lead to the elimination of bycatch of Maui's dolphins," it said.

"This includes full closures of any fisheries within the range of Maui's dolphins that are known to pose a risk."

The organisation, which made a similar plea to ban fishing last year, noted that proposals for seabed mining, including seismic surveying, also represented a potential threat.

Campaigners protest to protect the critically endangered Maui's dolphin, in front of Parliament House in Wellington, on May 2, 2012. The Maui's dolphin is one of the world's smallest, with a maximum length of 1.7 metres (5.5 feet), prompting conservationists to call it "the hobbit of the sea".

The call for action was contained in a report published over the weekend which revealed for the first time the recommendations of the IWC's annual meeting in South Korea last month.

Barbara Maas, an endangered species specialist at Germany-based conservation group NABU who attended the meeting, said there could be no more stalling if New Zealand wanted to save the dolphin.

She told AFP on Monday that the country was willing to spend tens of millions of dollars promoting itself as the home of "Middle Earth" and "clean and green" but needed to back up the marketing with action or risk tarnishing its image.

"There's no time to lose here, we're already down to 15 adult females, we're losing them," she said.

"We're looking at a species of dolphin going extinct in a country that advertises itself as 100 percent pure... it's all very well faffing around with a fictitious hobbit, but here you have the hobbit of the sea, the smallest dolphin in the world, that needs saving."

Three movies featuring J.R.R. Tolkien's fictional characters have been filmed in New Zealand, with one released so far. Tourism officials launched a major promotion on the back of the movies.

The local fishing industry disputes allegations it is to blame for the dolphin's demise, saying it has become a scapegoat while other explanations such as the parasitic disease toxoplasmosis are ignored.

(Phys.org) —New Zealand's heavily endangered Hector's dolphin population could recover if protection measures were extended out to 100m deep throughout its habitat, according to a new University of Otago review.

Conservationists warned Monday that Hong Kong may lose its rare Chinese white dolphins, also known as pink dolphins for their unique colour, unless it takes urgent action against pollution and other threats.

New Zealand is facing pressure to save the world's rarest dolphin at an international scientific meeting underway this week in what conservationists say is a test of the nation's "clean, green" credentials.

Recommended for you

Professor Hyun-Gyu Park of the Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering at Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) has developed a technique to analyze various target DNAs using an aptamer, a ...

As an National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded entomologist, Virginia Tech's Paul Marek has to spend much of his time in the field, hunting for rare and scientifically significant species. He's provided NSF with an inside ...

(Phys.org)—A team of researchers with members from Washington University, Johns Hopkins School of Medicine, the Howard Hughes Medical Institute and the Polish Academy of Sciences has found that problems with RNA appear ...